The Dark Chronicles: The Struggle With Darkness
by King Jean-Luc
Summary: A mysterious ninja sneaks into Konoha, his quest one of intense revenge. Inside of him courses a dark secret, a past wrong he yearns to right. Together, with three allies from the Leaf, he seeks his revenge on those who wronged him, and fights against new villians unlike any they have seen before. All amidst a boy and his battle with the inner darkness.
1. The Stranger

Hi guys. Just a few notes. I want to apologize, but my first few chapters in this story will be rather short, as it was hard for me to create the plot line until I got the ball rolling, when I started giving the story much more content and development. During the initial stages, posting this story anywhere was not part of the plan. It wasn't until after, when I was coerced into it, that I decided to post it. That being said, I hope you enjoy, and I hope to hear back from you soon!

* * *

**The Stranger**

A storm raged violently throughout the night sky. It seemed to linger over Konoha all night, loud, black, and cold as it was. Violent though this storm seemed, the citizens of the village took no notice of it, as at this hour, in this weather, almost everyone was asleep in their comfortable beds. Konoha was dead at this hour, just a collection of buildings standing against the weather.

The storm, however, served a purpose this night. There was a boy who was not asleep at this late hour, but then again, he was not from Konoha. He stood atop the monument of the past Hokages, his feet planted on Minato Namikaze's head. He blended in with the night air, and in this weather was nearly invisible to those who might be looking up at him. He wore black leather for protection, and a sword hung from his waist. His black hair was the same shade as his clothing, and he had piercing dark blue eyes that showed an advanced intellect. Those eyes showed that he looked for every possible answer to any problem that presented itself to him, and usually found the right answer. The eyes were now scanning the village, looking intently for something hidden in the false safety of the buildings.

"Konoha," he said aloud to himself, "The Village Hidden in the Leaves, and home to the Hokage. I can't believe my luck; this storm is the perfect cover for me. I can just blend in the dark; I don't even need to use my chakra to hide. This will be a piece of cake; all I need to do is find where the Hokage would put important documents."

Suddenly, he sensed an interesting presence that he was surprised he overlooked before then. Below him, a single ninja dressed in an orange and black jump suit was walking in the streets. The stranger atop the Hokage's head froze instinctively, surprised that he hadn't been discovered. He had gotten cocky, and he thought no one would be awake at this hour. He neglected to disguise his chakra, and was shocked this boy down there didn't sense him. The stranger's chakra was not by any means unnoticeable, and he sensed this boy down below had nearly as much chakra at his disposal as the stranger did. There was something else about the boy as well, but the stranger couldn't place his finger on it.

Then the stranger made his second mistake of the night, and he let his gaze wander from the boy, lost in his thoughts. He was so worried that he had almost been discovered, that he let his guard down even further, and was totally unprepared when he felt the tip of a kunai press up against his neck. The boy had snuck up behind him while he was thinking, and now had the upper hand. He must have sensed the stranger's chakra when he passed under the statues and climbed up to investigate the foreign presence. The stranger had blended in for a while when the boy climbed up, but he didn't see the boy either due to his distraction.

"So," The boy said, anger evident in his voice, "you wanna tell me who you are and why you're hiding on top of the Forth Hokage's head in the middle of the night?"

The stranger thought a curse to himself, and did a jutsu. He dove into the earth leading into the Hokage's head, and reappeared behind the boy, his own blade drawn. The boy wheeled around instantly and swung his kunai at this stranger, who easily blocked with his long sword. As he blocked, the stranger turned his blade downward, and swung upward at this boy, who flipped out of the way just in time.

"Perhaps," the stranger began, "you would be so kind as to tell me your name first, so I can have an idea of the mighty ninja who defeated me this night." The sarcasm and anger in his voice was obvious. This stranger did not fail, he did not lose, and he most certainly did not get discovered by leaf chunin, which is what he assumed this boy was.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm going to beat your sorry ass! Believe it!"

"Well Naruto, I'm afraid I have no time to play around with a leaf chunin like yourself, so if you could just forget you saw me, we can both get back to enjoying this beautiful night."

"Beautiful? It's a massive storm! Why would I forget that I saw you? What are you trying to do?"

"You don't understand sarcasm do you? If you want to fight me, we will fight. Why would I tell you what I'm doing? How stupid do you think I am? Well, I suppose it is a fine night for a duel."

"It's raining!"

"Behind the clouds, fool! Look deeper into things than they seem, else you'll miss their full potential. The moon is full tonight, and once this storm passes, the scene will be beautiful and peaceful, like night should be."

Naruto burst out laughing at that, and the stranger frowned. He couldn't understand why Naruto was laughing when they were about to fight. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" Naruto said as he was laughing.

Frowning, the stranger looked at this laughing boy before him, and though he was the same age as him, he had a hard time seeing Naruto as a worthy opponent. He had let his guard down just because of a simple comment, and the stranger could easily get at least one hit in on him right now.

"Are we going to stand here socializing all night? I am pressed for time, so let's fight so I can get on with my business."

"Hmph, you're not gonna be able to do anything when I'm finished with you."

"Well why don't you prove it instead of saying it?" As the stranger said these words, Naruto charged. He launched at the stranger with an odd ball of chakra in his hand, screaming "Rasengan" as he ran.

The stranger then did something unexpected, as was his style. He ran toward Naruto rather than away from him, and slide on his side along the ground to knock Naruto's feet out from under him. The darkness of the night and the stranger's black attire made it hard for Naruto to see, and he fell on his face while dispersing the Rasengan, only to get right back up. The stranger wasted no time and launched a fire ball at him as he was recovering. The flame hit the ground, and when the smoke cleared, Naruto was no longer on the ground. He looked up, and saw two Narutos falling toward him in the air, both with Rasengans in their hand. The stranger was grabbed by a third Naruto behind him, and was helpless to do anything but take the attack.

At least, that was the plan. The stranger reached behind him and, using the strength of his arms, flipped the Naruto grabbing him to the ground. Then, he sliced the shadow clone with his sword, and wheeled around with great speed toward the other two. He dispatched the one on his right, and dodged the one coming from his left. The final Naruto landed on empty ground, and looked up from the small crater his Rasengan had made to look for his opponent, who was now gone. Suddenly, two fire balls came hurtling toward him, from two strangers. Naruto turned around, expecting the stranger to use the same tactic he just tried to do, but instead found two more strangers with swords.

"What's wrong?" The four said in unison, completely hiding any chance of finding the real one. "Can you not tell us apart? You're not the only one who knows your Clone Jutsu you know." Naruto threw shuriken at the two behind him, but they dodged away. The other two closed the distance, and engaged him with their swords. Naruto fought with kunai against them, and tried to get distance away so he could use a jutsu, to no avail. This stranger was fast, and his shadow clones were perfect copies of him. He knew to keep Naruto in a position where he couldn't use any jutsu, making him unable to do anything. The two clones hammered on Naruto in such a way that he couldn't hit them in return. When one left himself open for an attack, the other swung from the side or behind, forcing Naruto to block instead of attacking.

"This isn't fair!" He screamed at the stranger, filling with rage. "You're fighting with your clones, and not doing anything for yourself. You can't get anymore cowardly than that! You want a real challenge, call off your clones and let me do a jutsu."

Suddenly, just as Naruto was about to turn into the one tailed cloak of the Kyuubi to destroy the clones and attack this stranger with more chakra, the real stranger appeared seemingly out of nowhere and dismissed his clones. Before Naruto could react, he put one finger up to Naruto's head and released some chakra in an odd jutsu. The chakra blocked the flow of oxygen to his brain, and the stranger watched as Naruto fell unconscious before him.

"Well, I have a feeling that would've been a lot more interesting if I had more time and was willing to let him fight back. I probably should've used more jutsu as well. No matter, hasty as I was, I'm still out of time. I will have to come back at a later date, and hopefully not screw it up next time. Next time, I might not release the chakra block at unconsciousness." Then the stranger turned and headed silently out of Konoha. The storm had gone, and now the stranger walked with a full moon behind him, illuminating his path and shining off his steel blade.


	2. The Meeting

**Chapter 2: The Meeting**

Naruto awoke the next morning, still on top of the Hokage monument. The holes that the mysterious stranger's jutsu had made were still there, proving to him that it wasn't a dream. His head spun, and his fight with the stranger was blurry and very unclear in his memory. Naruto couldn't remember what this stranger looked like, or feeling his chakra. All Naruto could remember was the relentless swinging of the sword, and being helpless to do anything.

_I will find him,_ Naruto thought, _I will find out who he is, and what he was doing in the village._ He stood up and ran down the other side of the mountain. He ran into the forest that surrounded Konoha, in search of this mysterious shinobi who had left him unconsious on the top of the Hokage monument.

He searched for a long while, but he couldn't find any indication of where the ninja had gone. This stranger had hidden his tracks well, and Naruto couldn't feel any chakra in the area nearby. He was about to go back to the village and search the forest on the front side when he felt it, the chakra of a ninja he wasn't familiar with.

Naruto ran toward the source, and found himself in a large clearing in the trees. There was a pond that filled the clearing, and sitting in the center was the source of the chakra. The mysterious ninja was sitting on the lake, his eyes were closed, and his sword was laid across his lap, as though he was meditating.

Naruto thought it was way too obvious a trap. This ninja had hidden his tracks so well, and now he was sitting here in plain view, not even trying to hide himself. Naruto created a shadow clone, while he himself hid in the trees. The shadow clone charged the ninja with a rasengan, and Naruto waited for him to spring his trap.

Unknown to Naruto, the ninja had opened his eyes when the shadow clone was made, and had watched as the clone made the rasengan. This move had intrigued him, and now he was trying to bait Naruto to use it on him again. As the clone ran towards him, he disrupted the balance of chakra that kept him on top of the water, and fell through, avoiding the attack. He used the weight of his sword to sink to the bottom, and jumped back up, right under the clone. He cut with his sword, and the clone vanished in a poof of smoke.

"Well, Naruto," he said, as though he had expected his appearance, "I see you found me. I hope you didn't have too much trouble tracking me down. Why don't you come out here so we can finish this like you wanted to? No clones, no cheap tricks, just you and me going head to head." He looked right at the area of trees Naruto was hiding in as he said this.

Naruto didn't move. He was confident that he could beat this ninja, but something made him hesitate. He couldn't figure out what it was, but there was something inside of him that didn't want him fighting this stranger.

"Considering the fact that I'm still standing here waiting, I suspect that you don't want to fight. That's odd, as you were so keen to battle me last night. I have a mission to do, and you were the only thing in my way last night. That annoys me, so you and me are going to fight, whether you want to or not." As the stranger said this, Naruto felt something press against his back. A shadow clone of the stranger had snuck up behind him, and Naruto was forced to go out into the open and fight this stranger.

"Okay, okay, I'll fight you." Naruto yelled as he came out from his hiding spot. His plan was to attack with a rasengan before this ninja had a chance to get close with his sword. Though the unamed ninja said he wouldn't use clones, Naruto had no reason to believe him, so he needed to end this before it even started. "Are you actually going to let me use my jutsu this time, or are you just going to use your sword to stop me like a coward again?"

"I only stopped you last time because if we both went all out on each other, the entire village would've heard the commotion, and I would have all the shinobi of the Leaf to deal with. Better to just put you in a position where you couldn't do anything."

"It was still a cowardly thing to do."

"Well, I'm not denying it was underhanded and cheap, I didn't even enjoy doing it. Why do you think I let you find me? I wanted to fight you in a full on battle, to see how interesting you make things. You seem to have an incredible amount of chak-" Suddenly, Naruto launched at him with a rasengan, and very nearly hit. Naruto had slowly walked forward while they were talking, until he was within range.

"Nice try, but I'm ready for anything you throw at me." The stranger then ran at Naruto with his blade, moving incredibly fast as he did so. Naruto blocked with a kunai, and the stranger went for an overhead cut with both hands. Naruto quickly hit him in the gut with a rasengan, sending him flying backward.

Something seemed wrong to Naruto. This ninja seemed like he was pretty good at planning and expecting his opponent's moves, and knowing how to counter them. It struck Naruto as odd how such a simple move could hit him. He was surprised when after a few seconds, the stranger got up like nothing had happened.

The stranger smiled at Naruto, and actually laughed. "You call that a Jutsu?" He asked. "Well then, watch this!" The stranger jumped high in the air, and angled himself toward Naruto. Then, he screamed, "Dark Style: Dark Rasengan!"

Naruto watched as the stranger flew at him, with a rasengan in his hand. This rasengan was differant than Naruto's, as it was black and slighty bigger. Naruto waited until the last minute, and jumped out of the way. The rasengan hit the surface of the water, and drilled right through. He had hit the center of the pond, and almost the entire pond was disturbed. A huge column of water had come up as part of the splash, and it was clear that it was a lot more powerful than Naruto's rasengan.

When the water settled, the stranger stood in the center of the pond, waiting for Naruto to make the first move. Naruto then noticed for the first time his eyes. The stranger had red eyes, with three black marks around the pupil. Naruto had seen that too many times to not recognize it, from both his sensei Kakashi, and his missing friend, Sasuke Uchiha. He was facing a wielder of the Sharingan. He found himself filling with rage, and prepared to attack again.

Suddenly, he was not standing on the pond anymore, facing an enemy ninja. Instead he was in front of a large gate closed with a seal. He had been here several times before. It was the lair of the demon inside of him, Kurama, The Nine Tailed Fox.

"Naruto," Kurama's voice echoed through the gate, for once not sounding full of hate and temptations, "I have interrupted your fight for a reason. Do not continue this battle if you do not intend on releasing me from my bonds. That creature you are fighting is far beyond your power, though I have no idea how it was freed or why it is here."

"What are you talking about? He is a ninja, not a powerful creature like you or the other tailed beasts."

"You fool! Can you not feel the massive amounts of chakra coming from him, nearly as plentiful as your own? Do you not feel the dark energy? Did you not think it odd that he was able to not only copy your jutsu, but make it a more powerful version? He is a jinchuuriki, just like you."

"A jinchuuriki?"

"Yes. Listen kid, that beast within him is beyond even my power. If this fight escalates, you're either going to have to free me, or die. I suggest you stop, because if you die, I die."

"Wait, what is more powerful than you?"

"So that's why you look so distracted. You're a jinchuuriki. That explains why you have such massive amounts of chakra." Naruto turned around to see the stranger standing there. He must have used his sharingan to enter Naruto's subconsious, like Sasuke had done before.

Kurama growled from his gate. "Get out of here, scum."

"So what number are you? Nevermind, I think this isn't the best place to talk. Naruto, this changes things, very drastically. Let's talk in the real world." The image vanished, and Naruto brought himself out of his mind, into the real world. The stranger was waiting there, standing right next to him.

Before Naruto could react, the stranger spoke again. "I no longer wish to fight, but talk. If you could hear me out, I promise to answer any of your questions."

"Well, first things first, who are you and what were you doing in Konoha?"

"My name is Kiyomasu, and I was looking for information I believe the Hokage had on a certain person."

"Kiyomasu what?"

"I don't know, honestly. My clan name was lost to me when I was very young. I have grown up away from my family, and have no idea who they even were."

"What tailed demon do you hold? I was just told that you are a jinchuuriki."

"I am, though not a jinchuuriki of one of the nine Tailed Beasts. I hold a darker, greater, and much more evil power. Have you ever heard of the Sage of the Six Paths?"

"Yes, I have." Naruto had no idea where he was going with this. What demon could possibly be greater and more evil than the Tailed Beasts?

"Well, no doubt you have heard that the Sage of the Six Paths saved the world from the tenth Tailed Beast, the Jyuubi. Legend says that the Sage defeated the Jyuubi, split his power into nine parts, and sealed Jyuubi himself in the moon. The nine segments of the Jyuubi's power became the nine bijuu, the Tailed Beasts.

"That's what legend says, but that's not what actually happened. The Sage merely made the legend that way so that no one would try to find the Jyuubi and his remaining power. Instead, the most powerful creature this world has ever seen was sealed underground, not in the moon. He was made dormant, and the Sage sealed him in an underground shrine, protected with the most advanced jutsu and seals he could muster. As an added defense, the nine bijuu were created for the sole purpose of protecting the Jyuubi's shrine at all costs.

"It was a fine plan, and his defenses were strong enough that no ninja could break even the weakest of them. Even if they could, they would have to face all nine bijuu. However, over the years, the bijuu grew restless in their task. They dicided that their job was to protect the world from the Jyuubi's evil power and influence. So they left the shrine, and went to destroy the remaining influence of the Jyuubi on this world. The most powerful and dedicated among the bijuu was Kurama, the Kyuubi. He appeared in the places where the darkest aspects of human nature were prominant, and destroyed them. He was misguided in his task, but he did do good in the end.

"However, while Kurama and the other bijuu were away, a man discovered the entrance to the shrine. He had a unique kekki genkai that allowed him to identify any jutsu or chakra to it's caster, and how to counter it. Using this, he discovered that the dormant Jyuubi lied within, and how to break past the Sage's defenses. He gathered a large band of followers, and stole a young child from a household. His plan was to make a weapon. A weapon powerful enought to destroy the world. He would use this weapon to threaten everyone and allow him to rule the world.

"He led his followers to the entrance, and using their combined chakra, they broke the first defense. The others soon followed, and with the bijuu gone, it was a cinch to get to the shrine. Though the defenses fell, they lost many men, until only nine jonin and the child remained alive. The leader broke open the shrine, and used a jutsu to turn the boy into the world's most powerful junchuuriki. The dormant Jyuubi went into the child, but left behind several peices of his power, which went into the nine others. The plan had worked, and soon they would rule the world.

"They would have succeeded, if one hadn't had a change of heart and stole me away in the night. She raised me in secret, away from the others. Eventually, she told me what happened, and soon after died, allowing me to take her piece of Jyuubi's power. That incident in the shrine was fifteen years ago, and I have spent the past year hunting down these ninja. These jonin who made me the monster I am."

Naruto had listened intently this entire time, and he felt sorry for him, because he could relate. However, there was one thing he still didn't understand.

"I'm sorry for you." He said, "I know what it's like to have a monster inside of you, but there's something I still don't get. You said that the fact I'm a jinchuuriki changes everything, but what does your story have to do with me?"

"Don't you get it? If the bijuu had stayed in the shrine, those ninja wouldn't have gotten within a mile of Jyuubi! They were created to stop him from being freed at all costs, but here I am, with a creature of near infinite dark chakra inside me. It's because of the bijuu this happened, don't you think they should help me fix it? I'm getting rid of the Jyuubi, I just need to kill the remaining eight survivors."

"But I'm not the thing inside of me! Are you saying just because the Kyuubi failed in his job it's up to me to help you fix it?"

"So you have Kurama inside of you... Naruto, I'm not telling you to do anything. I'm asking you to help me. The Kyuubi is the most powerful of the bijuu, and if I had both you and him on my side, this mission of mine would be much easier."

"Still, why should I help you? You tried to kill me twice!"

"I understand. Just do one thing for me, please. Return to Konoha, and think about this. Return here in the morning, and give me your answer then. If you decide to come with me, then that makes things much easier, if not I will have to break into Konoha again and get my information. Then I will be on my way, and you'll likely never see me again. Until then, goodbye Naruto Uzumaki. Say goodbye to Kurama for me." With that, he vanished in a poof of smoke, leaving Naruto alone to return to Konoha.


End file.
